Writing instrument



Spt. 16, 1952 P. MARTIN WRITING INSTRUMENT Filed March l1, 1949 QW QW A,

INVENToR. Y

.resume Patented Sept. 16, 1952 `UI\I-I..'I`I .ID STATES TENT OFFICE 'lastucia 'wRiTiG iNsTRUMENr. y ,."L'ynn R'Martin, Fort Madison, Iowa,assigner to A. -Sheaer Pen '.Company,A Fort Madison, lowaya "corporationof Delaware v1inputum March. 11, 1949, serial No. 80,931

'This y.inv@nticn rentes# tot writing sac which contaihsthejink'suppliedto the'pen point through a suitable 'feed means Inv order to ill"pe'ri'sof this ltype a1 suitablezpresser bar has genereuyrbeenp'royiuedwhich isy actuated by aievie'r mounted on the meterme-instrument.'presser bar uponfjmovement vof the lever collapses fthe link sac." 'Thevpenpoint is Vthen in'- serted'iiit'a ,body of "ink, the leverv andpresser bar reieaseu, and' tine inltgis vthereto' drawn into the 'Sac'.fryfth'tildellCy Of the flexible Sact slnorally distende'd condition.The use o'fpresser bas of this type for'dea'ting c'ollapsible i-'iiksacs in fountain 'pens has not been entireiy. .satisfactory Vfor fthereason that: the operat'ngilve'r' is unsightly in appearance and for thereason that sometimes the lever becomes accidentally displaced so thatink is rdischanged accidentally from. 'the pen' when not vso intended bythe user. Also Vthe presser bar actvatedlling-themas .ha-li been,d'Sad'VatagOuS Sillc tjS notfpractically possible completely tocollapse rthe ink- .sac .in order to permit a full Yload vof Finir to bedrawn up r`into the sac dur-ingthelllingoperation.

y Accordingly .it been propc'i'sedl in the'pastjto utilize .airvpressure .to deflate the ysac `prior to ,-'f'illing". ne prior` art.device 'ii/hichv hasjseen somefcommercialhuse is. one" in which the inksaaie-contained .Within acl'iainber formedby a pair.offtelescoping.tubular members. .In V.this type of Vvcclnetruction Ythechamber 'is substantially sealedn from the atmosphereV except for asmallvent placed in the top of one of the telescoping tubes. The devicewasfilled by extending one of the tubular-members,Y placing. the lingerover the vent hole, telescoping -the members whereby the.-sac--wasfdeiated by compressing air in the chambenifnserting-the penpoint into a body of inln and tlienwemoving theifingerzfrom the vent,thereby relieving the pressure in the chamber permitting the sac tobecome jdistended by its vnatural.resiliency and to suck vup'fa chargeof ,into the sac reservoir.'

Pens .of this.: char- 'actergzwere vnot entirely ksatisfactory Afrom Vacorn'-s in'ercial. viewpoint' for the reason that sometimesvvtheoperator neglected to' place his'nger 'over Athe tentait thepr'cpei-til'me lduring fthe nlling opere 'ottima (ci. 12o-ero Ilinstrurnents andin'cre' particularly to"selfllin'g' fountain 2completely close thejvent and the 'sac was onliT partiallyoollapsed,`resulting in only partialjnlling of the rservoir.` y y In orderto-remedy these rlast 'mentioned `diiiculties, otherpriorrartlinvestigators have proposed means for automatically` venting'V thereser- Voir at the proper time lduring the filling oper= ation.Irl-Iowever,` these proposed'means have in.- volved a more or' lessvcomplex arrangement of valves and 'other mc'iving 'parts which renderedj the commercial construction of such devices not feasible. l Y f--Acc'ordinglyt it is one object of this invention to provide aself-filling 'fountain pen4 which utilizes air pressure for donating thesac.

A further object ci this invention-'is theprovision of `anautomaticselfelling 'fountain pen of Vthe air lpressuref typc-nv-Wlfierein avminimum of moving parts and. auxiliary valves areerntic'yedJ. A. LAiurther object of this invention is the pro=I vision 'of a llingldevicejfo; a vfountain pen which may lbejreadily constructed and easilyassembled for largeqscalercommefrical manufacture. l

`A still further object of Athis linvention `the provision of afoolproof" filling device Whichjre- Quiros' no skill orspecial care onfthe part of the-operator to render it completely'effective at alltiniest i 'sA stul'ffurtnerobjeet of Athis invention isv theV provision'cia fountain benin which'a cartridge Klo 'comprising a penr and inkreservoir section is readily separable'from the compression unit'inorder top'iovlde for ease ci' :disassembly'and for c. independentreplacement of'parts.

y atmosphere except throug'lia passageway between said' tubulari'rnembeits,4 'an airiiow r'estricting memberin' thepfassageway, and apair of spaced means on one oslid tubular members for .by-apa'ssing theairflow Vr'est-,rictir'ig member whereby thechamoer isfireely vented tolthe atmosphere between the" 'tubular members when the tubular membersare telescopically'moved respectively to a distended or extendedposition `andto afre'turned or retracted position. 4In this ln-anri'eithe' cellapsible -inlrl rcservoiris deiiated by compressed air when thetelescopic members are pushed together but, when the return position isreached, the chamber is automatically vented by the by-passing means torelieve the air pressure so that the sac immediately reinfiates byvirtue of its natural tendency to assume the distended condition. Thesac then readily lls with ink if the pen has been inserted in a suitablebody of ink at this point in the operation.

More specically the present invention contemplates a fountain pen havinga barrel, an

ink feed means supported in a forward portionk of the barrel, an ink sacdisposed within the barrel, a tube telescopically slidable within thebarrel adapted to form a chamber about the ink sac, said tube beingopened at its forward end to receive said ink sac and closed at its rearward end to prevent venting of said chamber through said rearward end,the barrel having an interior annular groove adjacent the rearward endthereof and an annular packing gland received within said annular grooveproviding an air ilow restricting means between the tube and the barrel,means such as a longitudinally eX- tending groove providing an area ofreduced cross section on the tube adjacent the rearward end thereof ofsuiiicient length to span the packing gland whereby the chamber isfreely vented to the atmosphere between the barrel and the tube when thelatter is moved to its full forward position, and means adjacent theforward end of said tube for venting said chamber when the tube is movedto its full rearward or extended position.

In accordance with a preferred modification of this invention, the tubeis provided with an enlarged head portion having a substantiallongitudinal dimension such that when the barrel and tube are fullyextended the tube will not have a tendency substantially to wobblewithin the barrel. Another feature of the herein described invention isthe provision of a protecting sheath for the ink sac within the barrel.This protecting sheath is provided with openings to permit free accessof air to the sac to permit its ready collapse upon compression of thetubular member. The sheath is attached to the ink feed means or grippingsection of the pen so that it may be readily removed for access to thecol-V lapsible sac. preferably mounted in a forward Section' of thebarrel by means of a gripping section for the pen. The gripping sectionisthreadably engaged with the barrel and is separable therefrom wherebythe barrel and the compression unit may be readily separated from thesheath, the ink sac and the feed means. This construction permits ofready separation and interchangeability of the elements.

For a more complete understanding of this invention, reference is nowmade to the drawing, wherein Fig. 1 is a broken longitudinal sectionalview of a complete writing instrument constructed in accordance with oneembodiment of this invention and showing the lling device in aninoperative or stand-by condition;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary sectional view of the writing instrument shownin Fig. 1 illustrating the operation of the filling device with thetubular member moved to its full extended'or rearward position;

Fig. 3 is similar to Fig. 2 except that it shows the tubular memberbeing telescoped into the In addition the ink feed means isA barrel withthe resulting pressure collapse of the ink sac; o

Fig. 4 is an enlarged broken detail view of the filling device in theposition indicated in Fig. 1;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of the device taken along the line 5'5of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 6'-6 of Fig. 4.

With particular reference to the drawings and more specically to Fig. 1,a writing instrument is provided having a barrel portion I0 and theusual cap I2 and pocket clip I4. Mounted forwardly of the barrel I0 andthreadably engaged therewith is a gripping portion or section I6 havingthe usual pen point I8 and feed means 20 mounted in slip-nt relationshipthereto. The gripping section I6 is provided with an axial bore 22 whichcommunicates with a collapsible ink sac 24 adhesively or otherwisesecured to a projection 26 extending rearwardly of a reduced rearportion 28 of the gripping section I6. Suitable ink feed passageways(not shown) are provided through the bore 22 and the ink feed means 20in the manner that is well known in the art in order to supply ink tothe pen I8 from the sac 24. The gripping section I6 together with thepen I8, the feed means 20, the collapsible sac 24 and an associated sacprotecting sheath 30 constitute a removable cartridge which may beseparated from the barrel I0 by unscrewing the gripping section from thebarrel at threads 36 (Fig. 1). The sheath 30 is provided with lateralvents 32 and an end vent 34 and is slip-fitted in a removable mannerover the rear end 28 of the gripping section I6 so as to provide readyaccess to the collapsible sac 24 in the event that such access isdesired. The gripping section I6 is provided with an annular groove 35for receiving three spaced detents 31 (one only of which is shown inFigs. l and 3) on the sheath 30. The forward end of the sheath is alsoprovided with an annular depression 39 so that, after the sac 24 hasbeen shellacked on the projection 26 of the section I6, the annulardepression 36 further tightens the sac on the projection 26 with thedetents 31 snapping into position within the groove 35. To remove thesheath from the section, it is only necessary to rook it slightly whilepulling to disengage the detents from the channel or groove 35. lf it isdesired to remove the ink feed means and the pen from the grippingsection I6 it is then only necessary to remove the sac 24 from the rearend of the gripping section and thereafter punch the feed means 20 andthe pen I8 from the bore 22. The various parts of the cartridge may bereassembled in the reverse order. As shown in Fig. 1, a threaded collar36 is secured to the gripping section I6 for removable attachment of thecap I2 thereto in a manner that will be readily understood.

The compression unit for the fountain pen of this invention comprisesthe barrel I0 and a tube 40 having an open forward end and a closedrearward end mounted in telescopic relationship to the barrel betweenthe inner side wall of the barrel I0 and the outer side wall of thesleeve 36. The rearward endof the telescopically mounted tube 40, aswill be most apparent from Fig. 2, is completely closed so that noventing can occur therethrough. A suitably threaded cap member 42 issecured to the rearward end of the tube 40 by means of a screw44, agasket 46 being provided to prevent possible air leakage at this point.Cap 42 is provided with threads 48 which are adapted to engagethreads 50in the rearward end of barrel I0 when the tube 40 is moved to andaside-,1e

v 5.v iseeinfe1c1-finthe;returnedgoifariorrnalstand-by conv Ehe tube 4l!.Lis loosely `mounted between the innersidej Wall ,of the .barrel il)and lthe outer .side- Wall of the sheathrr vin ,order to k,lerendedition indicated in ,Eig-s-.f 1 .and 4.-

an an ular `passageway `for the vmovementof Y.air

into and out of `thechambel" enclosing the sheath 13g-[andi the sac24and Vformed by the barrelld and the'rtube 40 A,'IlillS. when ythe.tubeflljsl'ew cipro/catedr Wthinthe barrel IE, the chamber isconsiderably yvaried in. size ,and thjesole, .means .is vextend d memberis in;, the fully extended position the ere, e; aok. .geland athusaeainvventinaille @liar-n er to :the ,atmosphere Thus any yacuum y @levelledY through the .groove Sie ime that the compression stroke isgcom en ed sabove described.VV in addition, Y

y tubularrneinber-D isprovided Withhone or more provide'dlfor vthe-entryand .expulsion or` .a'fir into f for irnitng.therearwardmovement of thetube `1li ithfrespect.tothebarrel lill.. Y. VAlso A the head er-. largesportions zoritneitute et 'has .a sus stantial'lcngitudinal"dimension sothat 'when the tube '-isinitle 'ully extended position as `ShowniI1`F1`g. Q2 'it wlillgnot Vhave av tendencyexoessively to .wobble;Withrespetto the barrel l e Thus a substantially 'Straight linejax'el.relationship is always ,maintained betweenthetube ed and the barrel lYte permit the operator toreadiiy returnthe'tubel topostion withoutbending or binding thesegrespective. `elements.. It. will benoted'that'the header. enlarged portion 152 does net t l tightly Withinth'ebarrel vIl! and the free passage of. air between ,-th'e-heedittendthe'barrel jl'is always permitted when thetube di) is re-I ciproeatedvin either direction..

'In Order't-o .provide means kf0.1#foreratvelrv sealu ingthechambercontaining the inkgsac during theY compression stroke of the jplston ortubular member 43, there iis provided'a ring packing gland E4seatedwithin an annullY groeve-56pm? The packing gland is thus ied AWithrespect to the `vbarrel -1 I iandithe tubular 'member d isfslidablertherethrough yas `wil1be ,well understood The function of ,thisiplacling glandgis [to ISeal orf the chamber during the kc :ornprsesion'stroke of lthetubular member so 'that'the ;air-pi issn/re builtiupVduring this operation will collapse the sac in themannerjindicated'inFig. fmHQWever, inf order to Vrelieve thepres'surev,within Ythe @chamf beraft'er the ztubular member has ybeen moved toits forward vpositlcyn;tl'n'is'permitting dthe sac to expand, there-sprovided "in thetubular m ernber-one or more grooves -58jinjthe rear-endthereofg.- W These grooves; preferably* extendv long itudir nally andfareoof suicient length to span ,the

packing'glandf When-,the tubular members@ isbecome distended ;by itsnaturalY resilien it draws ajfullcharge o'jinkinto itself pen VIiiandthe'inkfeedmeans 2Q are immersed in a suitable liquid vink .supplyduring fthe iill'ing operation. i

e One or Vmore longitudinally'eXtendinggrooves 50 are also providedonJ-'anforwaroljend of: the tubular memberfd so that when "the" tubularvidedadiacenttherearwardi'endoi the-barrette.

vent holes! E! iny the groeve, 0r `grooves these ven hesalso,beingfpostioned sothatthey `are ,mernberls hilly extended.. 1r Aed, thegroovesli maybe omitted, thetune.le o, thereof:benasuppnee bythe. vent hele el,v AI nsiicliet casev anyY vacuum created in thechamber will, upon Vifiill extension of the tubular member,be'dispelledthrough the vent holes el andthe annularpassageway between:the tubular me'rnbell 411 andthe.sheathv k3l).A

y llhe procedure Vfollowed for discharging and nllingofthepengwill beapparent from the above description.AlS ofthe foregoing descriptionmakes it cleanhow .thefvarious `parte .maybe readily` as! semble, ovprolduce' ahighl-y. satisfactory .coma mercial article,--.Thesheath,30'- for.Y the ink. sae 24,-is provided-gto yprevent,the collapsejof;the sac in a longitudinalldirection (i. e. in the mannerA of anaccordioh-eand yalso-to prevent contact of the 4sac-With the;tubularmernberda If such contact were permittedmthe frictionallengagement ofthetubular member4 Withthe sacduring the nllingV operation lwould khavea tendency to twist,

stretch,` o r- 4bendy 'el- 1e sac `resulting in undue Wear and.wouldlprematurely expel,. any.unused,inkfthat maybecontainediwithin theYreservoir, Also the slieath'byyirtue of its Snugtamund the 2 4Y v serves:to prevent. 'the @collapsible f sac from being pulled out of shape Whena suction or vacuurn ,is vvapplied in the. chamber upontlie--withdravvalY fit-the tubular member 450 Vto the extendedposition., As pointed vout above,.the sheath by Vrtueof theannular-,depression 39 tends to tightn en-theiit of thesac 241m the rearportici or. thegg'ripping Section I6 by a squeezing action. The openings32and 34` in the sheath 3@ are neem essary in order to provide freeaccess of the compressed air to the sac to permit ofthe coln lapsingoperation. The sheath 30Vhas been shown in AY'thefform ofa-rnetalis'leeve. However, it Willr plastiaor, in tacit4 anyimaterialthat is sufficientu ly rigidto holdA the: s ac fromcollapsing when notintended-.Wine1155131 Itf-:Will-,be-noted that the `barrel il! visprovided with avent ifiedjacent the `rear end thereof be= tweenthepacking gland 54 and the rlower klimit of the g cap 42 when the latteris; fullyA screwed into @theirear end of: the barrel i le, to the fullyretracted lposition- :sliewnin Figs. 1 and fl. VThis ventje provided sothat. when the cap 4?; is screwed on to the-.barrel lll a pressure'willnot form within lthe ychamber"'-Wliich would cause a partial Vexpulsionof the inkfromthe sac. The vent .62T also serves to permit theairchamber to' "breatheA When'the instrument is assembled ready ,foruse,- thus' preventing leakage of the pen uponluctuation ofatmospheric-pressure or temperature conditions, as lsv/ell known in theart.-

`Itrwill be understood that thegpacking gland 54 may' be formed-of anymaterial which will serveY asY a means for Yrestricting the passage ofair through the annular passageway Vformed between the tubular memberdand the barrelfld For example, the packing gland maybe formedcreated-.Whenthetubular member all' v aci 0,612

of rubber, felt, -nylon or other suitable'material. As a matter of fact,the packing gland itself may be dispensed with and a suitable shoulderor ridge may be provided to form'the desired air flow restricting meansin the passageway. It is not necessary that the seal formed by the airrestricting means be perfect.A Itshould be sufficiently loose so as topermit free reciprocation of the tube 40 but suiiiciently tight topermit the desired pressure tobuild up on a normal compression stroke'soas to substantially completely collapse the ink sac'immediately prior tofilling. If desired, a suitable lubricant maybe employed to avoid anypossible undesired frictional resistance in the reciprocation of thetubular member 40 through the packing gland.

In the foregoing a preferred embodiment of this invention hasbeendescribed. However, it will be apparent that' certain modificationsmay be made. For example, the ink sac need not be received within thetube 40 but may be remote therefrom. Also, if desired, the tube 40 maybe of increased diameter so that it slides over the barrel I instead ofwithin it. In such a construction the anular packing gland `B may bemounted in fixed relationship to the inside wall of the tube 40 adjacentits forward end and suitably spaced longitudinally extending groovesadapted to span the gland or other vent means to by-pass the gland maybe provided in the walls of the barrel I0 as will be understood.

Longitudinally extending grooves 58 have been specifically shown forventing the chamber when the tubular member 4I! is movedto a returnedposition. If desired, however, such venting means could take the form ofa reduced cylindrical portion of the tubular member in the embodimentshown.v

While a particular embodiment of this invention is shown above, it willbe understood, of course, that the vinvention is not to be limitedthereto, since many modifications may be made, and it is contemplated,therefore, by the appended claims, to cover any such modications as fallwithin the true spirit and scope of this invention.

I claim:

l. A compression unit for collapsing an ink sac in a writing instrumentwhich comprises a rst tubular member open at its rearv end, a secondtubular member telescopically mounted through the rear end and withinsaid rst tubular member, said second tubular member having a openforward end and a closed unvented rearward end, means on the forward endof said iirst tubular member for securing an ink sac and feed means fora writing instrument, a packing gland vintermediate said tubular membersretained in an annular groove adjacent the rear end of said firsttubular member, means deiining a longitudinally extending grooveadjacent the rear end of the outer surface of said second tubular memberadapted lto spansaid packing gland to provide free passage of airbetween said tubular members when positioned in a relatively telescopedposition, means at the rearward end of said first tubular member forremovably securing said second tubular member in said telescopedposition, said rst tubular member hav-` ing a vent positioned in theside wall thereof between -said last mentioned means and said packinggland, and means defining an aperture in the forward end of said secondtubular member for by-passing the packing gland when said tubularmembers are positioned in a telescopically extended position.

2. l'nia fountain pen, the combination of a barrel, an ink sac disposedwithin said barrel, ink feed means supporting said ink sac secured to aforward end of said barrel, a tube telescopioally slidable within saidbarrel adapted to form a chamber about said ink sac, said tube beingopen at its forward end to receive said ink sac and closed atitsrearward end to prevent venting of said chamber through said rearwardend, said barrel havingan interior annular groove adjacent the rearwardend thereof, an annular packing gland received within said annulargroove providing an air flow restricting means between said tube andsaid barrel, means forming an exterior longitudinally extending grooveon said tube adjacent the rear end thereof and of suiiicient length tospan said gland whereby said chamber is freely vented to the atmospherebetween said barrel and saidtube when .the latter is positioned in aforward positionmeans including an aperture in theforward end of saidtube for by-passing said packing gland andventing said chamber when saidtube is in a rearward position, threadedl means cooperating between therearward ends of' said barrel and said tube for securing said tube insaid forward position, and means between said annular groove and saidthreaded means forming a vent in said barrel.

3. In a fountain pen, the combination of a barrel, an ink sac disposedwithin said barrel, ink feed means supporting said ink sac secured to aforward end of said barrelfa tube telescopically slidable within saidbarrel adapted to form a chamber about said ink sac, said tube beingopen atV its forward end to receive said ink sac and closed at its`rearward end `to prevent venting of said chamber through said rearwardend, said barrel having an interior annular groove adjacent the rearwardend thereof, an annular packing gland received within said annulargroove providing an air flow restricting means between said tube andsaid barrel, means forming exterior longitudinally extending grooves onsaid tube adjacent the opposite-ends thereof and of sumcient length tospan said gland whereby said chamber is freely vented to the atmospherebetween said barrel and said tube when the latter is positionedrespectively in afforward position and in a rearward position, threadedmeans cooperating between the rearward ends .of said barrel and saidtube for securing said tube in said forward position, means between saidannular groove and said threadedmeans forming a vent in said barrel, andstop means for preventing axial separation of said tube and said barrel,said stop means including a substantially rigid portion of increaseddiameter-formed at the forward endA of said tube extending for aVsubstantial longitudinal distance thereof whereby relative wobbling ofsaid tube with respectto said barrel is substantially prevented whensaid tube is in the rearward position.

4. A compression unit for collapsing an ink sac in a writing instrumentwhich comprises a first tubular member open at its rear end, a secondtubular memberV telescopically mounted through the rear end and withinsaid firstl tubular member, said second tubular member having an openforward end'and a closed unvented rearward end, means on the forward endAof said first tubular member for securing an ink sac and feed means fora writing instrument, an annular air flow restricting memberintermediate said tubular members secured to and'within said firsttubular member adjacent the rear end thereof,

means defining an inwardly extending deformation adjacent the rear endof the outer surface of said second tubular member adapted to span saidair flow restricting member to provide free passage of air between saidtubular members when positioned in a telescopically retracted position,means at the rearward end of said first tubular member for removablysecuring said second tubular member in said retracted position, saidfirst tubular member having a vent positioned in a side wall thereofbetween said last mentioned means and said air flow restricting member,and means in the forward end of said second tubular member forby-passing the air flow restricting member when said tubular members arepositioned in a telescopically extended position.

5. In a fountain pen, the combination of a barrel, anink sac disposedwithin the barrel, ink feedA means supporting said ink sac secured to aforward end of said barrel, a tube telescopically'slidable within saidbarrel adapted to formV a chamber about said sac. said tube being openat its forward end to receive said sacV and closed at its rearward endto prevent venting of said chamber through said rearward end, an annularair flow restricting means positioned between said tube and said barrelyand secured to said barrel adjacent the rear end thereof, meansdefining an inwardly extending deformation adjacent the rear end of saidtube adapted to span said air ow restricting member whereby said chamberis freely vented to the atmosphere between said barrel and said tubewhen the latter is positioned in a forward position, means in theforward end of said tube for by-passing said air fiow restricting memberand venting said chamber when said tube is in a rearward position, meanscooperating between the rearward ends of said barrel and said tube forsecuring said'tube in said forward position, and means between said lastmentioned means and said air flow restricting means forming a vent insaid barrel.

6. A compression unit for collapsing an ink sac in a writing instrumentwhich comprises a first tubular member open at its rear end, a

ysecond tubular member telescopically mounted through the rear end andwithin said first tubular member defining an annular air passagewaytherebetween, said second tubular member having an open forward end anda closed unvented rearward end. means on the forward end of said firsttubular member for supporting an ink sac and feed means for a writinginstrument, an annular ow restricting member in said passagewayintermediate said tubular members supported by and within said firsttubular member adjacent the rear end thereof, means defining an inwardlyextending deformation adjacent the rear end of the outer surface of saidsecond tubular member adapted to span said air iiow restricting memberto provide free passage of air through said annular passageway and tobypass said air flow restricting member when said tubular members arepositioned in telescopically retracted position, means for removablysecuring said secondv tubular member in said'retracted position. saidannular passageway having a Vent positioned in a wall thereof rearwardlyof said air iiow restricting member, and means in said second tubularmember forwardly of said deformation for by-passing the air flowrestricting member when said tubular members are positioned in atelescopically extended position.

LYNN P. MARTIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

